Finding Love in a New World
by Jiro Hikari
Summary: Sequel to Light & Shadow's Love- In 2004 Tokyo, the Kenshingumi are reincarnated as demons! High school will never be the same! KK AM Sorry! sobs I'm on vacation at my aunt's (mansion), and forgot the floppy C.4 was on. I'll update soon. bows low
1. Reunion in a New Life!

Finding Love in a New World  
  
Hello!!! The Jiro is in the house and ready for more! We have ISTEP this week- that means no homework for me and lots of story for you!! Don't worry, no Tomoe. Standard disclaimers apply. Even if you did sue me, I'm broke. All you'd get is pocket lint anyway, so don't try it.  
  
Chapter One- Everyone's Here?!?  
  
Kenshin paced the school hall eagerly. He was sixteen now. He still had his red hair and amethyst eyes, but there were some differences- he was much taller this life, and had no scar. He and Kaoru had been reincarnated as full dog demons in 2004 Tokyo. They were members of separate clans that lived outside Tokyo, passing off as humans. Kenshin and Kaoru still remembered their past lives, so they considered themselves still married. The two angels who gave them new life said they should do so if they wanted Kenji, their son, to be reincarnated as their own.  
  
The two went about life in the mountains in their home villages. This year, they were assigned to go to school in Tokyo together, once they came of age. That day was today, and Kenshin could finally see his Kaoru again. Hearing footsteps, he whirled. A blur of raven and sky blue slammed into him, crying his name. "Kaoru!! Koishii, I missed you so much!" he cried, returning her embrace. His father and mother looked on in confusion. Their son had never seen the girl, how did he know her? They continued to puzzle over this as Kenshin and Kaoru proceeded to kiss each other heatedly. Kaoru's mother merely smiled, and her father was baffled.  
  
A tan-haired dog demon strode over. This was the guy in charge, and he didn't look very pleased with the two. "Attention here, kids. It's seven in the morning, not the night. Why don't you just mark the girl if you're so in love?" he demanded, earning a death stare from Kenshin, Kaoru, and Battosai. Shaken, but not defeated, he attempted to pry them apart. No luck. After a long five minutes, Kenshin and Kaoru separated voluntarily. The man rolled his eyes. "If you'll listen now, we have to get you to Tokyo by ten o'clock. We set out now. You may call me Dante. Got it?" he snapped, pulling the two along. Tossing human clothes at them, he told them to change. Kenshin looked confused. "There's no hole for our tails," he said, eyeing the jeans. Kaoru nodded. Dante growled in frustration. "Forget it, no human should be able to see them anyway. Just put the kuso things on." The two sixteen year olds nodded meekly, following his instructions without a fuss. This Dante was not a nice man.  
  
The threesome moved swiftly towards Tokyo. At the city limits, Dante left them. He gave the directions to their home, which was close by. Kenshin and Kaoru found their home- a nice and big one- entering and flopping down into their chairs. "Dante-san was an impatient man, that he definitely was. Sessha has no wishes to see him again." stated Kenshin, saying their guide's name in disgust. Kaoru mimicked Dante sarcastically, then pretended to smack him one with a bokken. Kenshin laughed, picturing the look on the sour dog demon's face.  
  
A squeal from the upstairs rooms made the two leap. A green eyed, black haired girl shot down the stairs like a rocket. She was followed by and oddly familiar man who looked their age. He was tall, around 6', with obsidian hair and icy blue eyes. It was none other than Aoshi Shinomori. After that, it was merely simple logic that told Kenshin who the living missile was. Misao was here too. Kami save us all, de gozaru! (De gozaru- showing politeness to someone) "What were you reincarnated as?" questioned Misao. "We're full wolf demon. See?" She pointed to her tail, which was a deep emerald. Kaoru looked ecstatic. She flew into a detailed description of the last sixteen years. Aoshi and Kenshin merely nodded and sat across from one another. "So you and Misao are both sixteen and a half? Darn, you're older!" exclaimed Battosai. Aoshi smirked; he finally had something on Himura. Kenshin looked thoughtful. "Hey Aoshi, how're we gonna hide our tails and ears?" he asked, pointing to his bushy red tail and red dog ears perched behind his bangs. Aoshi shrugged, ears laid flat in confusion. Twitching his left ear, he watched Misao play go (a Chinese game) with Kaoru. "I guess we'll figure out on our own," Aoshi suggested, pointing out a move for the girls. Kaoru took lots of Misao's territory, making the older girl grumble and mumble. Kaoru shot Kenshin a victorious grin. Misao continued to pout.  
  
Several games later, Aoshi and Kenshin were fast asleep, and Kaoru was about to win for the fifth time in a row. Misao fell over, snoring loudly. Kaoru just finished her off and walked off to make some tea and ramen. When the ramen was almost finished, Kaoru heard thunderous footsteps. Quite suddenly, Aoshi, Kenshin, and Misao appeared at the table, eyes fixed on the ramen pot. Misao was bouncing manically. Kenshin had his bowl and chopsticks at the ready. Aoshi looked calm, as usual.  
  
Kaoru served the ramen, very nearly getting her hand bitten off by an over-enthusiastic Misao. Kenshin and Aoshi ate as they always did- politely. Kenshin was faster than usual, though. Misao finished, her face covered in noodles which were taken off and eaten. "Misao, what did your mother say about eating too fast?" giggled Kaoru, handing the girl a napkin. Misao wiped her face, then turned to Aoshi. She began inching her chopsticks closer and closer to his ramen. Once she was about an inch off, she snatched at it. Aoshi grabbed her chopsticks using his own, picked up a second pair and ate with those. Misao tried for his bowl again and again, but Aoshi just serenely ate as he blocked her every time. Kenshin stopped eating to watch, amused by this odd game. It took nearly ten minutes for Misao to figure out she wasn't going to get anything.  
  
Kenshin moved next to Kaoru, across from the thieving weasel-girl, bringing his ramen with him. Kaoru giggled, figuring that Misao was trying to flirt with Aoshi. Even after being reborn as a demon, she never quit doing that. This life was definitely going to be interesting.  
  
Ta da! Here's the first chapter. If it stinks, I understand. ISTEP was like hell on earth- I have a science teacher who is unmarried for good reason. Those of you in Jackson Creek Middle School should know. Those of you who aren't- consider yourselves extremely fortunate. Next chap school is in for our Kenshin-gumi, but their unusual appearances wreak a little more than havoc.. You don't see kids with dog & wolf ears, tails and fangs every day, now do you? 


	2. Return of the Hiten Mitsurugi Sensei!

Finding Love in a New World  
  
Chapter 2- Return of the Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu Sensei! Kaoru Takes a New Style!  
  
Disclaimer: Sessha owns nothing at all, that she doesn't.  
  
So sorry it's late!! My baka abazureon'na mother banned me from the net for getting a B in Literature. That just sucks. GET A LIFE WOMAN! This week, a friend of mine died, so I was crying all week. Sorry again.  
  
This story and all others of mine from here on in are dedicated to Lucius Pollock. Find peace in heaven, my friend.  
  
Kenshin moseyed about the house, humming. These laundry machine things gave him WAY too much time. Then he remembered- Tomorrow was the first day of school. He had heard tales of terror from the adults in his village about crazy old men, women the size of wrecking balls with too much energy, and long, dull speeches. Poor Battosai had very nearly screamed in horror at the disturbing mental images this conjured up. This would be truly pleasant. To a freak, that is.  
  
Kaoru was bored. No swords, no baka Yahiko, no Sano. Life without them was soooo dull. She might as well go find Kenshin, so to prevent death from boredom. Sighing, she stood and walked out of her room, then slid down the banister for kicks. Not finding him in the first floor, she then jumped down the laundry chute to the basement, landing in a pile of linens. She remembered the second floor kitchen, racing upstairs again.  
  
Battosai huffed, preparing to chew out Kenshin. 'Baka rurouni, go find your girl! There's more to do than wander the wild frontier of your HOUSE. Take her shopping or something, go buy a sword for her.' said Battosai, rolling his golden eyes. Kenshin blinked. 'My sakabatou! Battosai, you're a genius.' He cried, racing off to find Kaoru. Battosai smirked cockily, he liked this new title. He swaggered back to his corner, bragging to no one about his supreme greatness and how he could do anything. Kenshin found Kaoru, that's certain- They collided head on in the kitchen.  
  
Aoshi and Misao's heads shot in the direction of the kitchen as a distraught ORO! floated across the yard. Aoshi shook his head- that clumsy idiot must've tripped over a chair or something. Misao giggled at the thought of a bewildered Kenshin performing a perfect faceplant on the kitchen floor. Looking at one another humorously, they returned to meditating, hand in hand.  
  
"Orororoo." mumbled a swirly-eyed Kenshin. Kaoru looked dazed. The two sat up simultaneously, rubbing their foreheads. Kenshin looked around, red ears cocked to one side. He saw Kaoru, and then remembered his goal. "Kaoru! I had a great idea! Let's go see if that swordsmith's shop on Fujisan (Mt. Fuji) is still running," said Kenshin swiftly, springing to his feet with Kaoru in his arms. She looked confused, to say the least. Nodding slightly, she stifled a yip as Kenshin bolted out the door.  
  
An hour later, the pair reached the spot where the forge was. A long, traditional Japanese building sat on the hillside, cherries framing the main door. An old man stepped out to greet them. "Welcome, young man. We do not often receive inu-youkai (dog demons). Please, come in!" he said, bowing humbly. When the trio entered the main room, several servants rushed out with swords in hand. There were all kinds of swords, big and little. A pair of sakabatou caught Kenshin's eye. The old man laid out the swords, describing each one. Kenshin and Kaoru cleared their throats, and then spoke politely. "If you could, sir, we'd like to see the sakabatou. I had one back in the Meiji just like them," said Kenshin, bowing humbly.  
  
The old man looked startled.  
  
"Why, we only sold one to a human man named Himura Kenshin around then. My father worked here as an artist- he painted the man onto a picture scroll I still have." Kenshin looked interested. "May we see the scroll?" he asked, one of the servants speeding out of the room. He returned with the scroll in under a minute. "H-here you are, s-sir," he panted. Kenshin smiled his thanks. Unrolling the scroll, he and Kaoru read through the whole thing. Kenshin eyed his human's appearance critically. His eyes lingered on the scar, making him habitually stroke the cheek where it once was. "Damn, was I that small? Anyway, I'd like the sakabatou, please," he asked, turning to Kaoru. "Koishii, do you want one, too?" "Why not? I like shiny stuff anyways," Kaoru laughed. The man sheathed the blades, then gave his price. Kenshin handed over the money, gave the first sakabatou to Kaoru, and then slid his under his sash. He took a deep breath, smiling. "Now I feel like myself! Nothing like a new sword under one's belt." Kenshin said, looking much more at ease. Kaoru, however, had a confused look on. She eyed the sword, then glanced at Kenshin, then looked at the sword again. "How in the seven hells do you use this thing?! Kenshin, you are officially teaching me the Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu. No buts," she exclaimed, earning a shocked look from Kenshin. He sighed, then nodded. He had figured she would ask eventually. Kaoru squealed happily, hugging Kenshin with all her might. A strangled 'Oro!' escaped the rurouni. "We can start tomorrow if you like, but I must consult a miko to get Hiko-sensei's opinion." suggested Kenshin, he and Kaoru running down the mountainside towards Tokyo.  
  
The next day, school began. Kenshin, Kaoru, Aoshi, and Misao had all gone shopping for human-ish clothes. The four managed to effectively disguise their appearances through different means, but Kenshin and Kaoru had trouble hiding their bushy tails. Eventually, they just bound them so no fur showed and used them as belts. "Here's our homeroom, Kaoru. It's A-203. Wonder who our teacher is, and what he teaches?" Kenshin noted, pausing outside the wooden door. He and Kaoru strode in, then stopped dead. Their teacher taught kendo. Kaoru shuffled next to Kenshin, unsure of what to say. Aaah, but the biggest shock was yet to come! As the two sat patiently waiting for the teacher, rough hands grabbed the back of their shirts and yanked them up and off the ground. Kenshin oroed, and Kaoru coughed.  
  
"Well! If it isn't my old baka desshi Kenshin and his mate Kaoru. They're the only two in my homeroom, and they even got their swords all nice and proper, too!" growled an all-too-familiar voice. Kenshin's eyes widened, and Battosai squeaked in a scared manner. "Hiko-sensei? Orororo." Kaoru twisted about, trying to catch a glimpse of her captor. She proceeded to call him all sorts of profane, untypable, rude, and excruciatingly painful names while swinging her fists about furiously. Hiko laughed. "Aren't you a feisty one! As mean as a dog demon."  
  
The swearing stopped as the two students gave their teacher a shocked look. "How did you know, Sensei?!" asked Kenshin, aghast. Kaoru nodded mutely. "Well, any decent Kaze Ryu (wind dragon) would be able to see it. I happen to be one, so your little efforts in hiding it were nil. Now on to school matters- You, the Shinomoris, and a few others made it into the special rank classes. These are reserved for the demons who come here, so the humans don't creep out. All of your teachers are demon or some other form of immortal, too." Kenshin rolled his eyes. This year was going to be extremely eventful, from what he could see. 


	3. Revealing the Teachers! Sanosuke's Hell

Chapter Three- Guess who the other teachers are.  
  
Hello!! I'm back. My homework is overloaded. I'm grounded from my DDR. but mom forgot the INTERNET!!! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAAA!!! I RULE! Anyhow, this chap will be really crazy. The broom man's coming! Battosai makes more than one appearance, too. I'm sure you peoples will like that. *JH's dog barks* The text is being a baka. It won't come out right!!! Pardon any messiness.  
  
Kenshin: Hikari-dono does not own me, Kaoru does. Hikari-dono does own Kenishi, Akari, Kurai and Kokoro. Please do not steal them, de gozaru. They are copyrighted.  
  
Hiko set his students down in their seats, smirking. One other person had an evil grin on as well. Apparently, Hiko forgot about his baka desshi's other personality.  
  
"Seijiro-sensei. Why don't you come over here for a bit?" growled Battosai, amber eyes glinting maliciously. Hiko stopped dead, then whirled. Upon seeing the gold eyes, he laughed. Hiko pulled out his sake bottle and took a huge swig out of it. Oh yes. very teacher-like.  
  
"So. The baka hitokiri decided to show his face. How has it been, locked up by the pink shirted rurouni?" Hiko plunked down in a desk next to Battosai. The manslayer shot his sensei a 'shut up or I'll kill you' look. The drunkard must've forgotten that he HATED that name. Kenshin briefly took over and screamed 'MAGENTA!!'  
  
"Have you ever been asked to seduce a girl, have a kid who's the spitting image of yourself, and get a free reincarnation? I'd say I had more fun than you did, spending a whole CENTURY up on some blasted mountain, you old git." he shot, making his sensei look very disgruntled. Hiko, being Hiko, smacked Battosai over the head, hard. His victory was certified by a faint 'Oro!'  
  
Kaoru had no idea what to think of Battosai and Hiko. She watched as the two launched into a full-scale verbal war, roaring out all kinds of profane, painful and unprintable insults, each being longer and more inventive than the last. They must have done that a whole lot while Kenshin was young last life. The shoji slamming open caught her attention. A boy with spiky, orange and black hair sauntered in, followed by a tall, messy fox demon with the symbol 'bad' on his back. Wait a second, bad on his back, tall, messy. SANO!  
  
"Sanosuke Sagara! You stupid, flea bitten, rotten MONGREL! You'd just leave poor Megumi back in Japan while you follow the life of a booze hound in CHINA?!? I saw ALL of it from heaven, you know!" Kaoru stomped up to the shocked man, her hands done up in tight fists. Hiko and Battosai stopped instantly to watch the fireworks- this was much more fun than coming up with ways to insult one another. Sano cowered with his hands over his head, knowing full well what was coming.  
  
POW! SMACK! "EEEEAAAAAOOOOOWWWW!!!" WHAM CRUNCH!  
  
Battosai, Hiko, and the tiger head boy winced in unison as Sano was slammed by an uppercut and left jab into the ceiling. Pieces of wood rained down upon the three bewildered onlookers and the pissed off dog demon. Hiko drank more sake. Why was the bottle still full? The tigerboy approached cautiously, obviously debating with himself on whether or not to risk his neck for his friend. He came to a consensus, and inched forward.  
  
"Busu. he stayed with her for years.. come on! Sano's a nice guy.." the kid pleaded, trying to look sweet so as not to incur Kaoru's wrath.  
  
"YAHIKO!?! Well! At least you stayed with Tsubame! Yup, I taught you right! I always knew you had more brains than that idiot." Kaoru jerked her thumb at Sano, who was trying to extricate his head from the hole in the ceiling. Kenshin and Battosai both oroed at once, and Hiko took a swig from his huge, magically refilling sake bottle. This would be one interesting homeroom this year.  
  
Kenshin, Sano, Yahiko, and Kaoru walked down the hall where their history class was supposed to be. Humans stared at the 'oddly dressed' new kids, whispering to one another. Battosai took this as an opportunity to exercise his favorite pastime- terrorizing unsuspecting idiot bystanders. Tossing the rurouni aside, Battosai took control. Whispering to Sano, who approved, Battosai whirled and growled. The overall effect of two-inch long fangs, scary golden demon eyes staring from the shadowy planes of a assassin's face, and long claws were a rather big shock, since the guy was really nice looking just a second earlier. Put simply, the hall was oddly empty whenever Kenshin came by.  
  
"Found it! Chou-sensei's room is here." said Kaoru, pulling the fox and dog demons into the room by the ears. Yahiko had already fled- he knew his sensei too well. Thankfully, no humans were in this room- it smelled good, for one. Sano looked skeptical, however. Chou.. Where in the seven hells had he heard that name before? It was something bad, he was sure of it. Like the glowy box with people trapped inside of it, this guy probably was a big ogre or something just waiting to eat his soul. The glowy-people- eating-box was a baaaddd omen..  
  
A Texas-like accent rang out over the class' yapping. "HEY! Rooster man! Git yer stoopid li'l butt in an' SID'DOWN!!". (Guess who.) Kenshin and Kaoru took seats near a silver haired kid, watching as Yahiko tried to calm a hysterical Sanosuke. The man was bawling out swears at the one man he hated most. (Jeez. Just wait till' math, Sano. Just wait. Mhehehehehh!) Sano knew something would go wrong. He had that bakayaro broom dude Chou for a teacher. Life is so full of shit sometimes. First the runt, then a megaTanuki, and now the damned BROOM! Man did school bite like a rabid monkey this year!  
  
Chou swaggered up to Kenshin, bending down to see the man eye to eye. "Well, I'll be darned, it's the Battosai himself. With a sword in school. His little miss' got one too. Rule one here- NO SWORDS IN SCHOOL!" he roared, Kenshin covering his now ringing ears in agony. Kaoru summoned her bokken out of thin air and smacked the offending blonde square in the head. "You. Do. Not. Hurt. My. Kenshin. Got it?" she snarled, threatening to strike again. Chou backed away meekly- he remembered Kenshin's missy, and why no one got on her bad side. Bokken hurt like hell when they impact your head at high speed.  
  
The class was spent with introductions- there were eight people in this class: Kaoru, Kenshin/Battosai (boy was that one a strange intro), Sano, Yahiko, Kenishi (a wolf demon), his mate Akari (a dog demon), Kurai and his mate Kokoro (both spirit wolves). Typical of a mixed demon classroom, really, so no one was worried. Kenishi, Kurai and Kenshin got along quite well, as did the three girls.  
  
They would be together in all classes this semester, then rosters would be scrambled up again. Next was math- the worst class.  
  
Humans were in this class, but only really advanced ones. They weren't too bad, but still. Humans are noisy as well. Battosai got another kick out of terrifying them, but a sharp rap on the head from their teacher prevented any deaths from shock. The hitokiri got ticked, whirled, and prepared to cuss out whoever just did that.  
  
"Why the h- eh eh.. WHY YOU TOOTHLESS OLD WOLF! KAMI KUSO BAKA!" Battosai discovered that the teacher was none other than Hajime Saitou. Just great. Sano was crying, and Yahiko merely looked puzzled. Yes, this year would indeed be interesting.  
  
"Alright, kiddos-Battosai, no growling please-let's get started. I know half of you from the Meiji, so how's about we get you lovebirds in the back to introduce yourselves?" asked Saitou, glaring at Kenishi and his friends. Akari stuck her tongue out, indignant. However, they still did as the old wolf said. Nodding approvingly, Saitou moved on to the day's lesson.  
  
"The man is very prompt. Rude, yet prompt." Noted Kenishi, golden ears back slightly from irritation. Kenshin laughed, pointing to a pitiful looking Sano.  
  
"He and Saitou go waaay back, to our previous life during the Meiji. They, um, hated each other with a vengeance. Were you around then?"  
  
"Yeah, I was born somewhere around 1786. I'm older than most here- save for Kurai, Kokoro, and my Akari" replied Kenishi, squeezing his mate's hand affectionately. Akari smiled, obviously concocting some evil plan to annoy the teacher one way or another, judging from the wicked glint in her eyes.  
  
"Well, this should be an interesting class this semester."  
  
Hahaha! Finally updated! I'm doing this instead of a research report and an autobiography! (I'm an unwilling teacher's pet- I get away with EVERYTHING!) Does anyone want fluff and waff between Kenshin and Kaoru, because I do! Oh, and Tsubame is going to be in here, but not much. I will do Yahiko and her if you ask! Much comic relief ahead, I'm working on slapstick! Poor oro-chan, he go through so much, I torture Saitou and Hiko instead. *walks off, thinking aloud* Should I give Hiko a wife?? Kenishi, Kurai, Kokoro and Akari are my original characters! I wuv them. Visit my homepage for artwork. It should be up soon, so check often. Love you, reviewers! POCKY FOR ALL! ~~Jiro Hikari 


	4. A Shocking Turn of Events! Hiko in Love

An Amazing Turn of Events - Hiko in Love?!  
  
Sorry I'm late. I'm in the process of battling off depression, so my life has sort of been eaten up by that. However, I will continue to update. Here's a holiday cheer up- this chapter's gonna be good and long. As in two- thousand-plus words long. So, I'm gonna get started- Pocky to all my wonderful reviewers! Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, and every holiday around this time of year!  
  
The next day, during homeroom, Kenshin and Kaoru discovered that on Tuesdays - that meant today - homeroom became a day long study hall. Sitting on a large pillow for reading, Kenshin and Kaoru studied for a quiz on Friday in math. Hiko sat at his desk, reading a book on swordsmanship styles. He often talked aloud to himself whenever he found an error. When the book moved on to the Hiten Mitsurugi style, Hiko seemed quite upset at how the author underestimated his technique. Eventually, Kaoru had to throw a textbook his way to shut the man up.  
  
Kenshin looked up when the door slid open, an onyx haired head poking in.  
  
"Is there a Seijiro Hiko in here? I was sent for him by my king," asked the person, bowing politely. Hiko beckoned them in, offering a chair for the visitor. Kenshin watched as the person walked in, and boy was it ever a woman. She was tall, with a body some would die for (but however, his Kaoru was better). Deep black hair flowed down her back, bangs framing a beautiful face with green-grey eyes. Hiko's face flew from an emotionless welcome to a look of pure, raw fascination when he laid eyes on her. He looked her up and down with a slightly perverted smile at the corners of his mouth. Kenshin stifled laughter, shaking with the effort. Kaoru peered around the side of their math book, curious.  
  
The woman sat gracefully in the offered chair, every motion followed by Hiko. She shot him a wink, Hiko inventing several new shades of crimson. He stumbled over a 'hello', waving weakly. Kaoru snorted, clamping a hand over her mouth. The lady bowed, introducing herself.  
  
"My name is Aoryu, and I am here on an errand for my father, the leader of the Water Dragon Clan. He said that if this Hiko person could win me within the span of a month, I would be his, for we are in need of a new king. Father is getting old," she said, her voice like music to Hiko's ears. He seemed oddly jumpy, something not normal of Kenshin's master. Kaoru watched the scene, interested at this sudden rapture Hiko had for the girl.  
  
"I-I'm Hiko. You are welcome to st-stay, miss, for we do not receive such lovely- I mean, such royalty for a guest here!" stuttered Hiko, acting like a shy boy around the prettiest girl in school. Aoryu giggled, making the poor swordsmanship teacher smile nervously through a bold red blush. Hiko was utterly tactless.  
  
Battosai had on a most crafty grin (think Cheshire Cat, Battosai style), obviously up to something. He took control, turning to Kaoru. Battosai whispered something in her ear, eyes bearing a hint of sly mischief. Kaoru slowly began to laugh silently, casting glances in the teacher's direction. Oh yes, they were going to lend the distraught man a hand, but how they planned to go about it would be ever so much fun to pull off.  
  
Aoryu decided she would sit near Hiko for the day, something to which the said man agreed to eagerly. Kenshin made a paper airplane with a note saying 'Need help?' on it and threw the thing at Hiko. The plane stuck in Hiko's hair, where he pulled it off, growling evilly at Kenshin. Reading it, he scribbled something on it and threw it back. Kenshin and Kaoru had to grab their faces to stop their hysterics. There was a big, red 'YES!' in permanent marker scrawled over the sheet of paper. Aoryu watched, unsure of what the weird carrot top had in mind, but figured it was some stupid prank.  
  
Lunch came, Kenshin and Kaoru pulling Hiko aside. "Hiko-sama! We have a great idea we think you'll like. Listen- invite Aoryu-san to a lunch at the Akabe- stupid me, it's not around anymore- at the Sakura Kaze (sakura wind) restaurant! Field trip, right? Think field trip for an excuse!" hissed Kaoru, elbowing a thoughtful Hiko. Battosai appeared, grinning wolfishly. He nodded his approval, explaining to Hiko how he had shown off to Kaoru in the Meiji. Hiko was soon agreeing with his two baka desshi, nodding eagerly and dashing off to find Aoryu.  
  
"Whoops, forgot to give him a pick up line. Oh well," Battosai said evilly, just knowing that his old git of a sensei would bungle somehow.  
  
At the Sakura Kaze, a sweet, brown haired young lady escorted the four to a table in a closed off room. Kenshin whispered something in the girl's ear, then asked where the kitchen was. Kaoru nearly fell over, but Kenshin's wink made her decide to see what her rurouni would do. The girl seated Kaoru, Hiko and Aoryu, with Hiko at Aoryu's side. Back in the kitchen, Kenshin tied his long red hair up and stuck a hibachi chef's hat over it, and let Battosai take over. With amber eyes and no red ponytail, Aoryu wouldn't recognize him. Battosai gathered everything he needed and headed out to put his plan to action.  
  
"Where the heck is that stupid apprentice of mine?! He's LATE." muttered Hiko, drumming his fingers impatiently. Kaoru explained with a nonchalant 'Bathroom' that seemed to ease Hiko's haste. Just then, Battosai came in, dressed as the chef. Hiko looked shocked for a second, but then he seemed to catch on. Kaoru just simply sat back to watch the show. Battosai did his best, even tossing the tea up and catching it in the cup. Hiko found his saucer of sake balanced on a chopstick in front of him. Battosai asked everyone their favorite food, tossing Kaoru a wink. He made use of the rurouni's blatant clumsiness, performing the same sushi stunt as his double had just over century ago. Aoryu gasped, watching as Battosai vanished and sushi appeared on her plate seemingly from nowhere. Even Hiko jumped a little, not having seen his sword style used in such an odd way.  
  
By the time Battosai finished, Aoryu was totally in awe. She clapped, hugging Hiko as thanks for taking her out for lunch with a hug. Hiko froze up, and was rewarded with a slap and a cry of 'HENTAI' two minutes later when he still hadn't moved to let go. Battosai bowed, then ran out, changed, and ran in, the rurouni in control.  
  
"Gomen nasai(So sorry)! I got lost, that I did!" he 'panted', Kaoru giggling. Aoryu and Hiko both ate politely, chopsticks rising and falling at the same time. They had eating habits in common, how strange, mused Kenshin, watching. For kicks, he used his godspeed and moved Hiko's free hand onto Aoryu's. The two leapt, blushing madly. They looked down in unison- they were still holding hands. Hiko tried to stutter out an apology, but it came out more as a squeak. Aoryu smiled, giggling. Neither moved their hand. Kenshin and Kaoru exchanged a 'Score!' look.  
  
They finished soon, Hiko paying the bill. On the way back to school, he informed Kenshin he'd try some ideas of his own next time. Kenshin and Kaoru wished him luck. Hiko would need it.  
  
That night after school, Kenshin and Kaoru told Aoshi and Misao of the events in homeroom. For once, Aoshi showed emotion (a sneaky, small smile), and Misao immediately set to work concocting plans for him to work with. Kaoru phoned Sano and Yahiko, who eagerly agreed to 'help' Hiko if he failed on his own. Sano brought over a book he had apparently written that was filled to the brim of all five hundred pages with ways to pull off this sort of thing. What was scary was that all of them actually would work on this scenario, since either side obviously liked the other more than a little. Sano having good ideas was an unusual concept, but nonetheless useful.  
  
During homeroom the next three days, Hiko made no moves. However, on that Monday, Hiko had finally gotten the guts to make his move. That move was to use his godspeed, but in a much different manner. Every five minutes or so he would dart over and just give her a little touch on the cheek or stroke her hair softly, and then pop back to wherever he was earlier. This, to his utter devastation, didn't even get noticed in the smallest way by his vixen.  
  
On that Tuesday, he put little gifts and a haiku in her favorite places to go and relax. This was accepted happily, but she had no idea who it was from. (A little brick-headed, are we?) Hiko then tried to seduce her, getting some assistance from Kenshin. They had a 'little' sparring match, in which Hiko purposely removed his white trench coat, claiming he couldn't fight with it on. This did catch Aoryu's attention, and was highly attractive to her, but she never showed it. Kenshin showed off to his Kaoru as well, succeeding in attracting every bit of attention Kaoru had. Poor Hiko felt HORRIBLE.  
  
Hiko shuffled over to Kenshin and Kaoru, dejected and hopeless. He plunked down in a chair, sighing.  
  
"None of my plans ever work. None. Why won't they work?" he grumbled. Kenshin smiled apologetically.  
  
"Perhaps you should go out for a walk on Mt. Fuji. It is some beautiful country up there, that it is. The sakura are even in bloom. Bring some good food for a picnic, too. Women love a picnic in a romantic location, do they not, Kaoru?" suggested Kenshin. Kaoru nodded vigorously. The depressed look flying off of his face, Hiko stuck a big hand on Kenshin's head.  
  
"You, Kenshin, are the smartest baka desshi a man could have."  
  
That Thursday, Hiko set out with Aoryu at noon. Kenshin hoped his master would get somewhere. At lunch, the cafeteria was oddly empty. Aoshi, Misao and the others crowded around Kenshin and Kaoru; waiting to hear this genius plan they had given Hiko. When Sano heard even the first two sentences, he burst out laughing. Aoshi had that tiny, evil smile on again, and Misao was laughing into his shoulder. However, Kenishi was quiet.  
  
"I hope you idiots know there is supposed to be a typhoon coming over land in a few hours. Don't you have a television?" he informed, looking around at his friends. In unison, they all said "No." Akari slapped her forehead. Such idiocy was all too rare.  
  
Up on Mt. Fuji, Hiko and Aoryu walked through a maple forest, watching the sunlight play through the leaves. Hiko looked skyward at the clouds passing over. They were mare's tails, a sign of an impending typhoon. He slowly processed this, then burst into action, taking Aoryu's hand.  
  
"Hurry! Come on, we've got to get to shelter. There's mare's tails out today. They always come before a storm! Hurry, Aoryu!" he cried, picking up a startled Aoryu. She didn't resist, for two reasons. One, Hiko was oh so nice and warm; and two, she was perfectly willing to avoid a thunderstorm. She hated lightning. So, Aoryu simply clung to Hiko as he sped towards the forest. A cold wind from the east picked up, giving no warmth or comfort. Rain splattered around them, Hiko holding his trench coat over Aoryu. Lightning flashed, and Aoryu screamed. Hiko had to find shelter soon.  
  
Kenshin watched worriedly out his homeroom's window as lightning flashed, wind howled, and thunder roared its fury over the pounding rain. All of his friends were there, waiting as well. Everyone was nervous, because even though Hiko was a jerk sometimes, he was a great teacher. Kaoru had her head buried on his shoulder- it was six thirty PM, seven hours since Hiko and Aoryu had left. To the class' shock, a billboard went flying past the window. Then a roof complete with shingles. Water was flowing like a river over the streets. Hiko had to get home, or he and Aoryu could be killed. 


End file.
